1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to puffed food products and in particular to a cutting and air injecting apparatus, including a rotating cutter roller with a surface configuration in the desired shape of the puffed food product, a back-up roller and an air manifold system to inject air between the layers of dough of a laminated food product before a shaped piece is cut by the rotating cutter roller. Thus the shaped laminated pieces are sealed around all edges and have a slight puffed appearance due to the air entrapped between the layers. By having a slight puffiness, the inner surfaces of the laminate do not bond and thereby form a puffed product when fried in cooking oil.
2. Description of Related Art
It is well known in the art to form puffed food snack products from laminated strips of dough. It is also known that adjacent layers or sheets of dough frequently stick together and thus do not puff when cooked. Some processes use chemicals or yeast for generating leavening gases in an attempt to form the hollow food product. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,268,187, the food product is formed of adjacent sheets of dough, the interface between adjacent layers is sealed continuously around their extremity, and then the shaped food articles are cooked in a manner such that steam generated between the layers is of sufficient pressure to force the layers apart in the center of the article to create a void in the central area.